Are The Bass Over Fed?

[MIbassin]

Alright, So i have this pond about an acre in size and it is literally the BEST looking pond i have ever seen!

 

Its full of lilly pads on both sides with open water in the middle, there is a drop off from about 1 foot to 15 feet.

 

However there are THOUSANDS of little frogs and i feel like there wouldn't be that many if there were bass in there( i fished this pond once and saw lots of big bass jumping, this was a couple years ago and i went back today with NADA.)

 

Whats up?? i tried everything! Swimbaits, hollow body frogs, senkos, spinnerbaits, traps

 

What do you think?

 

Thanks

[Khong]

Hey buddy,

 

When this happen, you want to fish very very slowly or you want to fish very erratically.  A different presentation will get you the strike you want.  

 

Remember, there are two type of strike a LMB will do.  1) Hunger Strike.  2) Reaction Strike.   

 

Obviously the hunger strike is not an option, so you need to make it react to it.  That's when it's the hardest to fish too.  

[Sam]

Michigan, you don't give us enough information.

 

We need to know the water temperature, water clarity, weather conditions, how far can you cast from the bank, any other forage in the pond and what were you throwing?

 

To expand on what Khong wrote, I revisited my Feeding Habits of Bass video outline and will now present what Uncle Homer Circle said in the video back in the 70's before either of you two guys were even thought of!!!

 

There are nine (9) reasons why bass it your baits. 

 

 

 

 

Based on studies on opinions back in the 70s which are still true today.

 

1. Hunger and Attitude – bass want to find a place where they can ambush their prey. This has them living by cover and structure where there are good ambush points and concealment.

Attitude – If the bass feel like feeding the will be in an “attack” position. This means they will be alert, moving and looking for food. When not hungry they will use their other instincts to hit your baits.

1. Anger – Bass protect their area and if you can get them angry they will hit your bait. They patrol their areas and keep other fish out of it, especially if it is a good feeding area.
2. Competition – Bass will fight to get your lure before other bass in the area get it first. This is why we get double headers on crankbaits.
3. Predator Instinct – The bass wants to kill any intruder while on the bed or in their area. Lizards are good baits for their predator instincts as bass hate lizards.
4. Curiosity – Bass are curious. If you see a bass and throw your plastic near them they will turn to look at what caused the splash. To get them to hit your baits you need to change colors or your presentation to make them curious.
5. Protection – Once again, if the bass are on their beds they will remove any fish, turtles, crawfish and your baits from their nest. The male bass will also protect the fingerlings for a few days after hatching and attack anything that threatens them.
6. Territorial Protection – A bass will hit a bait if the bait comes into their area like an intruder.  As with all predators, if the location provides good ambush points and concealment when you remove one bass from that specific area another one will take its place. This is called a “honey hole” by tournament fishermen.
7. Reflexes – Reflex action by the bass when a prey fish or your bait swims by. The bass is minding its own business when out of the blue here comes your bait. Crank fast and watch them hit it out of reflex.
8. Feeding Frenzy – Probably not in your pond but in lakes the bass will feed on what we call “balls of baitfish” in the fall. Not what you are thinking but a large gathering of small prey fish swimming in a large ball on the top of the water. When the bass feed on these “balls of baitfish” they go crazy and eat the entire fish, not just the one part mentioned in the nomenclature. Just remember the larger ones are under the ball. Try to match the hatch with your baits and be cautious about your approach. Cast across and in front of any balls of baitfish.

 

Armed with this information we now expect you to go back to the pond and try your luck again. Fish for baitfish today. Yes, try to catch any bluegills or bream to find out if they are in the pond. If so, adjust your presentations accordingly. Use Nightcrawlers, dough balls or kernals of corn from a can as bait with a small hook and a  bobber.

 

Look for minnows. Throw out some bread and see if the minnows, bluegills and bream hit it. Adjust your baits accordingly based on the results.

 

You can also go to the pond first thing before sunrise on a weekend morning and try a topwater or stay late for sundown and try a topwater. Listen and watch to see if there is any topwater action in the pond, too.  Be sure to tell someone at your house where you are going at all times when you visit the pond and be extra careful not to fall down, in or over the water and the various animals that call the pond home.

 

We could give you lots of suggestions on how to modify your baits but let’s first find out how you do with finding the forage and trying to aggravate them into hitting your lures.

 

Good luck and let us know how you do.

 

And don’t forget your needle nose pliers to remove the hooks.

[JayKumar]

Do you see any bluegills or bass in there?  Try something huge, like my fave a 12" worm. 

[MIbassin]

Don't know the water temps and as for forage, I just saw frogs! I saw so many it was crazy. I did not see a single minnow however that doesn't mean they aren't in there. Water clarity was about 3 feet. I only saw some signs of bass when I scared one near the bank and that's it. Course years ago this pond was full of big bass jumping, if it helps we did get heavy rain the night before

[Sam]

Cold front!!!  Shuts 'em down for a few days.

 

Go back on Wednesday if you have no more cold fronts moving through and give it another whack.

 

Also, try to fish for bluegills and bream plus throw some bread on the water to see what it attracts.

 

Throw an unweighted Zoom finesse worm or a Senko over the pads, letting it sink in between the pads as you go. Let the bait drop, you shake it a few times, and then bring it up and do it all over again on the way back to you.

 

Try a spinnerbait or crankbait. Spinnerbait through the pads and the crankbait parallel to the outer edge.

 

Hit all individual pads away from the main pad field with everything you got.

 

A drop shot can work, too.

 

Let us know how you do and be sure to memorize the nine reasons the bass hit your baits.

 

You may also want to get some bass fishing DVDs for Christmas plus a bass fishing book or two. Kevin VanDam's and Denny Brauer's books are excellent as are their DVDs. Ike's DVDs are outstanding.

 

All the best for some successful fishing.